A Comparison of Avast vs Ad-Aware by the Spyshakers.com Team Editors

A custom antivirus comparison of Avast vs Ad-Aware by the Spyshakers.com Team Editors (accurate as of March 3, 2015).

Avast!

Lavasoft Ad-Aware

Versions:

Avast! 2014 Free - There is a limited free version of Avast available for download at the Avast website. It has basic antivirus and spyware detection functionality.

Avast! Pro Antivirus 2014 - Pro Antivirus adds functionality like the SafeZone which is an enhanced security environment for shopping and banking. The key feature is the sandbox which you get in the Pro version.

Avast! Internet Security 2014 - The Internet Security version includes the sandbox like the Pro version but it also includes a sophisticated firewall, a spam filter and advanced phishing prevention methods.

Avast! Endpoint Protection - Avast Endpoint Protection is a separate business product with more than five PCs. With Avast! Endpoint Protection you will find antivirus for systems such as file servers, email servers, and sharepoint servers.

Versions:

Lavasoft Ad-Aware 11 Free - Ad-Aware Free Antivirus is the most popular downloaded antivirus on the internet. It comes with a lot of solid features to compliment the standard antivirus protection such as link checking against the Ad-Aware cloud (Safe Browsing), a malware sandbox, and a game mode.

Lavasoft Ad-Aware 11 Total Security - Total Security is the complete package with some sweet features such as a PC Tuneup, parental controls, online backup, data recovery and rootkit detection (rootkits are a very nasty flavor of spyware).

Strengths:

The Avast! 2014 sandbox is the real deal. With a single click of the mouse you can completely isolate the browser from the rest of the system. That means even if you download a virus in the sandbox your system stays clean.

FileRep lets you know whether a file is safe before you open it. The safety is determined by how many people already downloaded the file and how new the file is.

It runs extremely fast and does not slow down your machine. In fact Avast! ranks 2nd out of 21 different antivirus suites in an independent speed test study at AV Comparatives.

Strengths:

With 450,000,000 downloads it is the most popular antivirus on the market.

The features on the free version are more robust than others. The Safe Browsing technology is a great feature. Ad-Aware leverages their incredible popularity to identify malicious links and update everyone to protect them from threats.

As for upgraded versions, you really need to go with the Total Security version. That is were the cooler features are at such as the PC Tuneup, Parental Control, and Online Backup.

Virtual Sandbox:

Yes. Avast! Pro Antivirus has a lot of sandbox options. It has a virtual sandbox for opening suspicious files. It also has a AutoSandbox for files Avast! detects as suspicious.

Virtual Sandbox:

Yes. Personal and Pro both contain a feature called Malware Sandbox Emulator.

PC Optimization:

No. We don't see anything in Avast! Pro Antivirus that is built to optimize PC performance specifically.

PC Optimization:

Yes. Total Security includes a PC Tuneup but also Lavasoft has a standalone PC Tuneup product called Lavasoft Registry Tuner.

Backups / Online Storage:

No. We don't see any kind of backup functionality.

Backups / Online Storage:

No. We couldn't find backup functionality in any of the Ad-Aware versions.

Parental Control:

No. Avast! is not the software you need if you are looking for parental controls.

Parental Control:

Yes. Ad-Aware Total Security includes parental controls by allowing websites with selected content to be viewed or restricted, monitoring web use and setting limits for time spent online.

Chat / IM Protection:

Yes. Avast! Pro Antivirus has an Instant Message Shield.

Chat / IM Protection:

Yes. The Personal and Pro Security versions help monitor malicious links that could be sent out via messaging and chat.

Customer Support:

You can contact Avast! via phone or online form if you have an issue.

Customer Support:

Lavasoft includes support in the form of forums, phone and online ticket.